LED Lighting Recommendations for Ceiling

8 years ago

Hello - we are remodeling multiple rooms after a flood damaged the ceilings and putting in new recessed LED lights. I've had a lot of difficulty finding LED high hats that mimic the characteristics of incandescent lights. My biggest issues:

1) The lights do not dim to the same low level as incandescent lights. The lowest dimmer level for the LED lights is significantly brighter than the lowest dimmer level for incandescent lights. We are using Control4 dimmer switches.

2) The lights flicker when dimmed. The flickering is not outrageous, but it definitely flickers a bit at low levels and is a little distracting. It actually makes me a little nauseous to sit in the room with the slight flickering of the lights.

3) The lights are not warm in color when dimmed. We have tried some lights that warm when dim, and they seem a bit better than the first lights we tried, but we are still having the issues with the lights not dimming enough and flickering.

Has anyone conquered these 3 issue with their LED high hats? If so, would you please share what you used and any other info that might be helpful? I don't know the brands of the lights we've tried so far - I've asked me electrician to let me know, so will edit this post with that info when I receive it.
Thanks!

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Comments (4)

PRO
JSL, Inc. - Lighting Design
8 years ago
You have detailed the LED dilemma . Control 4 makes good gear as does Lutron and several other manufacturers.

Do the dimmers have neutral wires? I suspect that they do but if they dont, it would explain the flicker.

What are the LED lights? While they all say they can dim most cannot do that well. One trick is to add a resistive load (like an incandescent light bulb) to the load. This often makes dimming smoother and a better lower end. Control 4 most likely has a list of fixtures and light bulbs it can dim well. This is a little after the fact for you.

The Color temp issue has been addressed but it is more expensive. There are some LED lights that have a white LED and an amber LED. They are on at different dimming levels, more amber at the lower level, to simulate the incandescent warming.

Jim Sale
Heather N
Original Author
8 years ago
JSL thank you for your feedback! It is very confusing because the electrician and the Control4 representative keep telling me that the problems are the other person's fault, and I don't know enough about the technical aspects of LED lighting to know who is correct!
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PRO
JSL, Inc. - Lighting Design
8 years ago
This is usual. LED dimming is a technical problem that turns into an artform quickly. I usually test specific lamps with specific dimmers before specifying. Can you send the catalog number or reference number for the control 4 dimmer(s) and the fixture and lamp specs? I realize that this is a tall order.

Jim
Heather N
Original Author
8 years ago
Thanks Jim! I will ask and see if I can get some more details!